All the very latest on the Liverpool injury and availability situation before Saturday’s Premier League clash with Brighton at Anfield
Liverpool will look to return to winning ways and keep the pressure on Manchester City at the top of the Premier League when they host Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield on Saturday.
The Reds won against the Seagulls in midweek with a 3-2 Carabao Cup victory on Wednesday evening. But head coach Arne Slot still has injuries to deal with as he prepares for a week in which the Reds face home games against Leverkusen and Aston Villa after the visit of Brighton.
Here’s the latest injury news ahead of the game;
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Diogo Jota
Injury: Upper body
The striker was injured early on against Chelsea after he was hauled down near the halfway line by Tosin Adaraiboyo. In an incident that contained similarities to the one that saw William Saliba dismissed for Arsenal in their 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth the previous night, the Chelsea defender was controversially only given a yellow card by referee John Brooks, despite being the last man back for his side.
Jota was given treatment at the time and initially played on before he was forced to concede defeat and come off for Darwin Nunez in the 30th minute.
Speaking ahead of the Brighton match in the Carabao Cup, Slot confirmed Jota would not be back before the international break,
Possible return date: After November international break
Federico Chiesa
Injury: Unspecified.
Federico Chiesa has now missed the Reds’ last six matches with an unspecified issue. Slot explained before the Leipzig game that Chiesa was struggling with injuries as he got up to speed with Liverpool’s training schedule after missing pre-season at Juventus.
“With Federico it’s a bit more simple, although it is difficult, it is a bit more simple to explain. He missed pre-season, I said this many times, and going to a league that is a higher intensity than Serie A, we just faced two Italian teams so I can say this now.
“That makes it difficult for him to make the step towards the intensity levels to where the rest of the team is at the moment. It has not so much to do with the Italian league or the Premier League but so much to do with him missing the entire pre-season.
“So it is difficult for every player, when the games are constantly there, to build up players to the levels we are at. It’s difficult to say but it is a big disappointment that he is going in and out of the training sessions all the time.”
Slot would later confirmed that Chiesa wouldn’t be available before the international break.
Possible return date: After November international break
Harvey Elliott
Injury: Foot.
The fractured foot Harvey Elliott suffered while on England Under-21 international has kept the midfielder sidelined since early September.
The clash with Chelsea had long pencilled in as a potential return date and the player himself hinted that he is closing on full fitness with a post on social media. However he did not return and Liverpool have no intention of rushing the 21-year-old back to action.
Elliott has been back on the grass at the AXA but has yet to fully train with the team.
Possible return date: After November international break
Alisson Becker
Injury: Hamstring.
One player who will certainly be missing for Liverpool on Wednesday is goalkeeper Alisson Becker, who is out for a minimum of six weeks after sustaining a new hamstring in the Palace triumph.
The Brazil international will miss vital upcoming games against Aston Villa and a visit from Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League among others.
But at least Alisson’s understudy, Caoimhin Kelleher, has recovered from the illness that sidelined him against Palace, and which forced Vitezslav Jaros to come on for his debut after the club’s No.1 limped off.
Possible return date: After November international break
